What do I need to do in the next ~year to be a T20 candidate?

[JakAttk]

Hello - I am applying next cycle, and while I know I have the stats for a top school, my ECs are not at their level. I'm worried about being caught in a middle zone where I'm rejected from lower-tier schools for yield protection, and rejected from high-tier schools because my app simply isn't that interesting. I'm looking for what I need to focus on to get to that top-tier application in the next year.

Current app (hours are extrapolated to the time I apply):

• 3.94 GPA, 527 MCAT
• Flagship public university
• Non-URM
• Current senior (taking 1 gap year)
• ~800 hours clinical (mostly hospital CNA, also free clinic volunteering and home care over summers)
• 100 hours volunteering with animals
• 24 hours shadowing (3-4 physicians)
• 1300 hours research
  • No pubs unless I get lucky with one of my current projects moving quickly
  • Will have PI letter of rec
• Engineering internship one summer
• Hobbies
  • Self-taught Spanish to conversational, passion for languages/language learning (1000+ hours)
  • Couple other small ones
• Let me know if I'm forgetting any important info

Things I know I need to work on:

• Volunteering with underprivileged people - I've been working on finding an opportunity but it's a little difficult with my current schedule so I'm still contacting orgs.
• Building relationships with professors for strong letters
• Finding a narrative / self-reflection to prepare for writing

So I want to know (a) what schools might I be a candidate for now and (b) what should I prioritize in the next year to maximize my application? Thanks so much for any guidance.

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[Z_C]

You seem really qualified : )

I'm not an expert but from my lay opinion, I would recommend looking inward and asking "what social cause in my local community do I Really Actually care about."

Like you want to be a doctor, you clearly care about helping people, there must be some people physically close to you who you care about helping, just throw yourself into that and don't count the hours, to me it feels obvious when someone volunteers because they are "supposed to" vs because they care about it.


Some examples might be, if you have been touched by addiction find a needle exchange (hell, run a needle exchange it's easier than you think), if you know someone who is system impacted do work with incarcerated people, if you know someone is a DV survivor work with a women's shelter. Don't think of volunteering as a checkbox, think of it as a way to fulfill your goals of helping people before you even have an MD!

You're gonna do great!

 

[JakAttk]

You seem really qualified : )

I'm not an expert but from my lay opinion, I would recommend looking inward and asking "what social cause in my local community do I Really Actually care about."

Like you want to be a doctor, you clearly care about helping people, there must be some people physically close to you who you care about helping, just throw yourself into that and don't count the hours, to me it feels obvious when someone volunteers because they are "supposed to" vs because they care about it.


Some examples might be, if you have been touched by addiction find a needle exchange (hell, run a needle exchange it's easier than you think), if you know someone who is system impacted do work with incarcerated people, if you know someone is a DV survivor work with a women's shelter. Don't think of volunteering as a checkbox, think of it as a way to fulfill your goals of helping people before you even have an MD!

You're gonna do great!

Thanks for the advice! I think you're right - volunteering feels like the part of your application where you really get to show yourself so I'm gonna really think about what matters to me.

 

[cj_cregg]

Your stats are stellar obviously, the ECs basically as you mention are strong but not currently to the point of an applicant that I would look at and say "wow" - even at the low tier school I review for. Some more work with the underserved is definitely the place you should focus on from an EC standpoint, but very strong essays and letters are what tend to push candidates like yourself into the X factor category. Essays/letters are somewhat in your control but I think ultimately rest on whether the candidate has the personal characteristics to back them up - depth, maturity, insight, etc.

 

[Goro]

Hello - I am applying next cycle, and while I know I have the stats for a top school, my ECs are not at their level. I'm worried about being caught in a middle zone where I'm rejected from lower-tier schools for yield protection, and rejected from high-tier schools because my app simply isn't that interesting. I'm looking for what I need to focus on to get to that top-tier application in the next year.

Current app (hours are extrapolated to the time I apply):

• 3.94 GPA, 527 MCAT
• Flagship public university
• Non-URM
• Current senior (taking 1 gap year)
• ~800 hours clinical (mostly hospital CNA, also free clinic volunteering and home care over summers)
• 100 hours volunteering with animals
• 24 hours shadowing (3-4 physicians)
• 1300 hours research
  • No pubs unless I get lucky with one of my current projects moving quickly
  • Will have PI letter of rec
• Engineering internship one summer
• Hobbies
  • Self-taught Spanish to conversational, passion for languages/language learning (1000+ hours)
  • Couple other small ones
• Let me know if I'm forgetting any important info

Things I know I need to work on:

• Volunteering with underprivileged people - I've been working on finding an opportunity but it's a little difficult with my current schedule so I'm still contacting orgs.
• Building relationships with professors for strong letters
• Finding a narrative / self-reflection to prepare for writing

So I want to know (a) what schools might I be a candidate for now and (b) what should I prioritize in the next year to maximize my application? Thanks so much for any guidance.

You've answered your own questions!